Puzzles

by Dick Nuenke

 

 

 

 
Check out  Quest   for more brain exercising.

 

 

 

 
The first January cryptogram was: 
DON'T  WORRY  ABOUT  PEOPLE  STEALING  YOUR  IDEAS.  IF  YOUR  IDEAS  ARE  ANY  GOOD  YOU'LL  HAVE  TO  RAM  THEM  DOWN  PEOPLE'S  THROATS.  —  HOWARD  AIKEN. 

Aiken (1900-1973) was a mathematician and early computer designer (to solve one of his mathematical problems) leading to the Harvard Mark I computer (1944).

Correct answers came from  Delmar BurkittAndrzej DerdzinskiJohn JacksonBob KaplanJeff LambAlma LittenJulia MinturnCarla NuenkeCarole PerlmanAmanda RyalDennis TomlinsonNick WolfJeff Wolfe,  and  Sally Yocom

The second cryptogram was a Haiku structure (3 lines of 5, 7, 5 syllables, respectively) as the first code word indicated.  The answer was

CHAOS  REIGNS  WITHIN.
REFLECT  REPENT  AND  REBOOT.
ORDER  SHALL  RETURN. 
designed as a Japanese computer error message.  Ironically, there were two unintentional "computer" errors in this cryptogram, for which I apologize (not sure how they slipped in despite my earlier proofing).  The N in WITHIN was omitted and RE TURN should have been one word.

Correct answers came from AndrzejAlmaJuliaCarlaCaroleNickJeff,  and  Sally

In the third puzzle, the order of merit of the six competitors (using initials) was C F A D B E.

Andrzej DerdzinskiElizabeth RooteBob KaplanJeff LambDennis Tomlinson,  and  Jeff Wolfe  were correct.


 
 

 

 

 
 
This month's first of two cryptograms is long with lots of short words.  It's from an actual English brochure for a Tokyo company.  Each letter stands for a different letter in the decoded message.
 
 
  

 

 
 

 

 
 
The second puzzle is a short cryptogram with long words.
 
 
  

 

 

 

 
This puzzle is by Martin Hollis from the column Enigma in the New Scientist by permission.

The diagram shown here is an unsuccessful attempt to find a series of four positive whole numbers (circles) with "averageable" squares.  Thus, the average of 1612 and 1272 is 21025, the square of 145, which is a whole number.  So we write 145 in the rectangle between 161 and 127.  Similarly we can write in 125 and 113.  However, the average of 732 and 972 is 7369, which is not a perfect square.

Your task is to find a ring of numbers in which the four circled numbers, taken by pairs in succession around the ring and squared, will average to a number which is also a perfect square.  There may be multiple possible solutions.  Give me one.


 

 

 

 
Correct answers and puzzle solvers will appear next month.  Send answers by  February 12th  to Dick Nuenke;  1460 Kingsgate Rd.;  Columbus, OH 43221 or call in (recording 24 hours) to 614-326-0452;  fax to 614-292-4118;  or e-mail to rnuenke@columbus.rr.com (best bet).

 

 

 

 

 
 

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